Patch 7.3.5 Artifact Weapon Instability (Spoilers)

We are retiring our artifact weapons at the end of Legion, and we've learned more about the story as to how our weapons become unstable. Spoiler warning.

At BlizzCon 2017, it was confirmed that we are retiring the artifact weapons for Battle for Azeroth. Earlier in the 7.3.5 PTR, we datamined a cinematic depicting our weapons soaking the corruption from the Dark Titan's Blade:

Now, we've learned the next part of the 7.3.5 story thanks to a tip from MysticalOS.Your Artifact Weapons will gain "Instability" from the corruption, causing them to periodically lose Artifact Power. When the Instability effect is applied, your Artifact UI shakes and the Artifact Power total ticks down.

This is speculation on our end, but we think this is just a cosmetic-only UI effect and you do not actually lose Artifact Power.

There are four instability levels which trigger based on your earned number of traits: Highest (80+ traits), High (71-80 traits), Medium (61-70 traits) and Low (1-60 traits). On the video below we are showing the Highest and Low settings.

Keep in mind that most of the artifact appearances will still be obtainable for transmog in Battle for Azeroth. You just need to complete the Mage Tower Challenge and Mythic + 15 achievement before Battle for Azeroth. More details here.

Комментарии

Комментарий от rodalpho

What is your rationale for thinking the effect is cosmetic-only? Simply that players will go absolutely crazy and explode the forums if they did it for real?

Комментарий от perculia

on 2018-01-08T10:51:30-06:00

What is your rationale for thinking the effect is cosmetic-only? Simply that players will go absolutely crazy and explode the forums if they did it for real?

"We were at 1% on Mythic Argus and then my artifact went unstable and we wiped."

Комментарий от Wishblade

on 2018-01-08T10:52:30-06:00

Well that's pretty cool.

I imagine lots of people are gonna have a fit of fright when they see that, especially with the depleting number.

Would be silly to suddenly lose power because you did a questline, so sure if you just reopen the artifact you'll see the number back where it's supposed to be, depleting yet again from the top.

Комментарий от rodalpho

on 2018-01-08T10:55:42-06:00

Easy enough to come up with ways around that, for example you could set instability to trigger only when using an AP item. If this was combined with allowing another couple levels of artifact knowledge and explaining that the overall effect would still be positive even at very high artifact levels, players might not explode the forums about it.

Rationale for that particular solution would be to get players up to artifact level 60 more quickly, but not to encourage endless grinding past 75.

Комментарий от velicela

on 2018-01-08T10:56:01-06:00

What is your rationale for thinking the effect is cosmetic-only? Simply that players will go absolutely crazy and explode the forums if they did it for real?

"We were at 1% on Mythic Argus and then my artifact went unstable and we wiped."

It also wouldn’t make any sense at all if it was more then cosmetic because people would purposyl avoid the quest lol

Комментарий от tastemyfur

on 2018-01-08T10:59:53-06:00

What is your rationale for thinking the effect is cosmetic-only? Simply that players will go absolutely crazy and explode the forums if they did it for real?

"We were at 1% on Mythic Argus and then my artifact went unstable and we wiped."

That's mathematically unstable.

Комментарий от artaxix

on 2018-01-08T11:07:59-06:00

And if they offered up alternative weapons, Perc?

Комментарий от perculia

on 2018-01-08T11:12:00-06:00

And if they offered up alternative weapons, Perc?

There hasn't been anything datamined in 7.3.5 that seems powerful enough to be a replacement weapon. If you equipped a replacement weapon that was more powerful, you'd be able to skip the whole Instability story arc too.

Комментарий от artaxix

on 2018-01-08T11:13:27-06:00

I just mean if they eventually decide to offer up alternative ones further down the Instability Arc.

Could be an interesting choice. Use the stronger/unstable weapon, or use a dependable/weaker one.

Комментарий от zHwK

on 2018-01-08T11:22:59-06:00

Another way to deplete AP for real would be to detach traits from AP levels. Your weapon effectively loses power, but your in-game performance is not affected.

At the end of the expansion traits will be removed and you'll have a completely useless weapon as it's supposed to be

Комментарий от midder

on 2018-01-08T11:32:12-06:00

Maybe its something like countdown to next expansion. Every day/week/month you will lose some artifact power until "prepatch" will be out.

No, look at the speed for the first example (Ashbringer). BfA would launches in a few hours if it's true haha ^^

Комментарий от GordonBuchat

on 2018-01-08T11:55:31-06:00

I think one of my alt's artifact weapons is already unstable, based on the things that it keeps whispering to me now and again.

Or maybe it's that alt that's unstable and is just hearing voices, hard to tell sometimes.

Комментарий от thephoenix3000

on 2018-01-08T11:57:42-06:00

Shouldn't it also be considered cosmetic only because in one of the PTRs, didn't the team find Concordance of the Legionfall stacking up even higher?

Yeah, they added another 50 level to Concordance. Personally it would be more interesting if the Instability did the opposite and increased the power. Slowly driving your AP to insane levels and only once we reach the pre-patch are we at concordance 100 and full instability. The weapons could become unwieldable, too far corrupted for mortals. Then let each order decide how to deal with the weapon in the retirement quest. But that's just my power fantasy at play.

Комментарий от Sp33dey

on 2018-01-08T12:03:51-06:00

this is freaking amazing honestly

Комментарий от Interest

on 2018-01-08T12:09:09-06:00

What is your rationale for thinking the effect is cosmetic-only? Simply that players will go absolutely crazy and explode the forums if they did it for real?

"We were at 1% on Mythic Argus and then my artifact went unstable and we wiped."

That's mathematically unstable.

Very unlikely situations aside, having that progression trickle away especially when it's still relevant to character performance (aka, before most of the effects become baseline) would be a special sort of low from a game design standpoint. It would basically discourage people from playing the game and we certainly don't need more of that considering how bad content obsolescence is in a game like WoW.

Комментарий от Donhorn

on 2018-01-08T12:38:17-06:00

This is... a little disappointing. I was thinking that a cool way to handle this would have been too have the act of pulling the corruption into the weapon in turn force the current power out of our weapons. With us being the next closest thing the power would surge into us instead (making sense of abilities becoming baseline/talents). The corruption could then make the weapons (low wise) into inert normal weapons. Throw in a special corrupted appearance as a cool bonus. I mean, blizzard could still do something like this but it doesn't seem likely the way this is looking.

Комментарий от AlphaMikeFoxtrot

on 2018-01-08T12:39:32-06:00

And if they offered up alternative weapons, Perc?

There hasn't been anything datamined in 7.3.5 that seems powerful enough to be a replacement weapon. If you equipped a replacement weapon that was more powerful, you'd be able to skip the whole Instability story arc too.

Unless the weapon was awarded after the quest line, but I do not see that happening prior to the next expansion. Could you imagine getting a stronger weapon, before BfA, after spending countless hours upgrading the artifact weapon?If it were 1-4 weeks prior to release, then I would believe that to be reasonable.